Joseph Giles

Hello — I’m Joe Giles. Welcome to my world of art. I’m really glad you’re here.

Creativity has always pulled at me, even when I wasn’t allowed to touch it. Paintings in particular — colour, movement, emotion — fascinated me long before I ever picked up a brush.

I was born and raised in a high-control religious group where freedom of expression simply didn’t exist. Life was governed by rules, surveillance, and uniformity. Even the way I dressed was dictated: white or blue shirts, dark trousers, black shoes — no colour, no individuality. Music, television, theatre, holidays, art — all forbidden. It was an extremely colourless world.

At 28, I was excommunicated and suddenly thrown into the wider world. In those early years, I spent hours wandering through art galleries, standing in front of abstract and contemporary works in genuine awe. It felt like entire parts of my mind were waking up. Still, I never imagined I could create anything like what I was seeing. That felt like something other people did.

Then, in 2024, almost by accident, I bought a cheap set of acrylic paints from TK Maxx and started playing. No plan. No expectations. Somewhere along the way, I created something that surprised me — something that felt alive. Painti...